


Bisexual Disasters

by Random_Nerd3



Series: HSMTMTS one shots and requests [2]
Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: Angst, Bisexual Male Character, Coming Out, Disaster Gays, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gay Panic, Gen, Hate Crimes, Hate Speech, Hurt Ricky Bowen (HSM: The Series), Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Men Crying, Minor Original Character(s), Panic Attacks, Sad Ricky Bowen (HSM: The Series), Tags to be added, and homophobes, anti-lgbtq+ bully characters, brave gays, please be advised, tags will be changed, theater kids clap back against homophobes, used by bullies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:41:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25983007
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Random_Nerd3/pseuds/Random_Nerd3
Summary: In the aftermath of the opening night disasters, Ricky and E.J. take the time to figure out what they mean to each other. Under the pressure of coming out, bullies, and a new show Ricky is grateful his amazing boyfriend is there for him through it all.OrThese two are bisexual disasters and I wanted to write some angst. This is a direct continuation from Panic At The Musical, but you don't really have to read that to understand what's going on.
Relationships: Big Red & Ricky Bowen (HSM: The Series), Everyone & Everyone, Mike Bowen & Ricky Bowen, Ricky Bowen & Gina Porter, Ricky Bowen & Nini Salazar-Roberts, Ricky Bowen/E.J. Caswell
Series: HSMTMTS one shots and requests [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1885303
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted an excuse to write angst and this was it. Please heed the tags, it will not be smooth sailing for Ricky and E.J. in this fic. There will be hate speech, hate crimes, and anit-lgbtq+ language used throughout majority of the first half of this fic. If I remember I'll add trigger warnings at the start of each chapter in the notes. There is no update schedule yet for this fic. This is unedited so it kind of jumps around, but it sort of sets up the rest of the fic.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> ~R

When the show was all said and done Ricky found himself home more often than not after school. Especially on the days he would usually have rehearsal. So, a few weeks later when he fell into a non-rehearsal dependent schedule and was actually able to sleep eight hours a night Ricky was surprised when he woke up to the loud blaring sound of his alarm screaming at him. Groaning he reached under the bedside table and bypassed the off button. Unplugging his alarm from the outlet, Ricky pulled his pillow over his head. Just as he was about to sleep his phone rang way too loud for six-thirty am on a Monday morning. He would’ve ignored the call but after checking the caller ID Ricky slid the green circle across the screen.  _ “I’ve been waiting outside for ten minutes. This is my third try calling you. Sleep through your alarm?”  _ E.J. asked through the phone speaker. Triple checking the time from his phone compared to the one frozen on his clock Ricky’s eyes widened in horror as he realized his house must’ve shorted power last night.

“Fuck,” he swore as he pulled on a clean shirt and pair of shorts. “I’ll be out soon, sorry for making you wait.” E.J. chuckled,

_ “Don’t worry about it. I showed up a few minutes early, figured you’d hit snooze again.” _ Ricky grinned,

“What can I say?” He said as he stumbled down the stairs dragging his backpack behind him. “I need my beauty sleep. I’ll be out soon,” Ricky said, hanging up the phone. To his surprise, his dad was up and frying eggs in the kitchen. The divorce was hard on Ricky, sure, but he was happy his dad had Miss. Jenn to count on. If his mom was happy, he was just glad his dad was happy too… even if it did still sort of suck.

“You slept late,” his dad noted with a slight frown. He flipped the eggs in the frying pan as the toaster popped to reveal well… toast. Nodding, Ricky bypassed the eggs and poured some of the day-old coffee into his travel mug. Screwing on the top he said,

“I know, E.J. is already on me about it. I’m late, I’ll grab breakfast at school.” His dad gave him a hug as he walked out the door,

“Text me when you get to school alright? Oh, and tell Miss. Jenn -” Ricky cut him off,

“ - that you’ll pick her up at seven. I remember dad.” Giving his dad one last hug Ricky slid his shoes on halfway and ran out the door to E.J., who was dutifully waiting in his car by the mailbox.

“Rough morning?” E.J. asked with a smile, he reached up and brushed a hand through Ricky’s still-knotty hair. Ricky gave him a sheepish smile, which definitely didn’t lead to blush filling his cheeks. Nodding he answered,

“A power surge temporarily took out the power at my house last night. My alarm didn’t go off on time.” E.J. chuckled,

“I’ll tell you what, when we get to school you can use my flower-scented conditioner in the locker rooms during lunch alright?” Ricky nodded then relaxed into the passenger seat as E.J. pulled away from his house. Fiddling with the radio he found a station playing Disney throwback songs most of which were from High School Musical the Musical. E.J. let out a laugh as they turned the corner. 

“Oh come on, live a little!” Ricky exclaimed. He couldn’t help but sing along as Zach Effron’s voice filled the car. E.J. caved and joined in after the first song ended. They sang through the first half of the first act then at the next red light E.J. leaned across his seat and parked a soft kiss on Ricky’s cheek. Ricky turned to him and returned the favor by kissing E.J. on the lips. Instead of leaning into the kiss though, to Ricky’s surprise E.J. pulled away from it.

“Ricky wait,” the jock said, pulling back. Thoughts of doubt began to plague Ricky’s mind.  _ What if E.J. thought Ricky wasn’t good enough for him? What if we break up? Then again, they weren’t really dating to begin with, was breaking up even an option?  _ “Hey calm down,” E.J. reached forward and tipped Ricky’s head up. “I can see your thoughts moving at a million miles per second.” Ricky exhaled slowly,

“So we aren’t breaking up?” E.J. shook his head,

“Not in this life.” A small smile peeked at the corner of Ricky’s lips. “There you go,” E.J. said with a grin. The light changed to green so he took the chance to turn into East High’s parking lot. Ricky sat in silence as he tried to figure out what E.J. wanted to say.

“What did you… what did you want to talk about?” Ricky asked as they walked to the drama room. E.J. sighed, then leaned against the lockers outside of the room. 

“Look I just haven’t told anyone I’m bisexual yet okay? I don’t… this is all new to me. You, me, boys…  _ us _ .” He let out a shaky sob then sunk onto the floor. Ricky sighed then shrugged off his backpack and slid down next to him.

“It’s new to me too E.J….” He trailed off then asked, “so what do you want to do?” Ricky stretched an arm around E.J.’s shoulder and the jock leaned into his chest. They ignored the warning bell as it’s shrill sound echoed through the now-empty halls. E.J. sighed heavily,

“I’ll tell you what I don’t want to do. I don’t want to break up with you.” Ricky nodded, and pulled E.J. closer.

“I don’t want to break up either. What if we both came out together? Carlos and Seb are together and no one’s said anything against them. If the guys on the water polo team end up giving us shit the rest of the drama club can fight them with us.” E.J. shuddered, pressured under the thought of his team finding out he’s gay, well… maybe gay. E.J. turned to face Ricky,

“We tell them together?” He asked with wide eyes, a mix of hope and fear. Ricky nodded and squeezed E.J.’s hand,

“Yeah. We tell them all together,  _ both _ of our teams. We can do it today during lunch.” Checking the time on his phone he said, “we should probably get in there. Homeroom is already half over.” E.J. nodded then the two of them stood up, supporting each other as they did so. Ricky exhaled and scratched the back of his neck. E.J. reached up and grabbed his hand,

“You do that when you’re anxious. There’s nothing to be anxious about, right? Just you know… finally telling people the truth about ourselves during lunch. Nothing big is happening today.” Ricky chuckled then cupped E.J.’s cheek,

“You’re rambling,” he noted, “you ramble when you’re nervous. It’s going to be fine.” E.J. nodded then picked up both his and Ricky’s backpacks off the floor.

“After you,” E.J. said nodding at the door. Ricky let out a quiet chuckle then pulled the drama room door open. Luckily, it seemed everyone was already occupied by conversations so no one noticed Ricky and E.J. slip into two empty desks in the back of the room. E.J. blindly reached out for Ricky’s hand so Ricky knotted their fingers together under the desk, concealed from any prying eyes. They were stronger together. They were going to do this  _ together _ . If he was being completely honest, Ricky didn’t want to wait until lunch to tell their friends they were dating.

\------

The rest of the day was as stressful as it possibly could be. Ricky and E.J. only shared homeroom and lunch. During the rest of the day they didn’t really see each other unless it was by a chance hallway passing. Slamming his locker shut Ricky scrolled through his playlists and plugged in his earbuds. “Hey, gayface!” Someone shouted over his music. Ricky ignored it, shouldered his bag, and kept walking. Dave was one of the relentless bullies East High had, if you were his target you were screwed. Unfortunately, the football player had other plans. “Gayface, I was talking to  _ you _ !” He shouted. As Ricky tried to continue ignoring him he traveled down the stairs to his chemistry lab. Hands pressed against Ricky’s back and shoved him down the other half of the stairs.

“What the  _ hell _ is your problem?” Ricky demanded, stumbling back to his feet. His bag was left forgotten in the corner of the landing. Dave shoved Ricky against the wall, arm pressed against his chest.

“My problem is you,  _ fag _ . Someone posted a pic of you and E.J. face fucking in the hallway on Friday.” He spoke the slur like it was just a normal cuss word and not an insult to an entire community of people. Ricky leaned his head back against the white bricked wall. 

“It wasn’t exactly face fucking Dave,” Ricky tried to justify the picture, but Dave wasn’t having any of it. The football star slammed his fist into Ricky’s stomach making him double over as pain shot through his ribs. “You turning the water polo gay along with the rest of your little theater geeks isn’t going to fly. Understand?” Ricky ducked out of the way just underneath Dave’s outstretched arm.

“You’re crazy dude!” Ricky exclaimed as he quickly snatched his bag from the ground. “Leave us the fuck alone,” he said trying to sound brave. Dave grinned wickedly as the bully loomed over him.

“What’s your faggy little ass going to do about it huh?” Dave asked tauntingly. Ricky ducked under his swing again and bolted down the rest of the stairs. He tried to blend in with the rest of the students congested in the hallway. Luckily the science wing was always one of the hallways with the most students no matter the time of day. Breathing heavily Ricky shoved his way into the thickest part of the crowd, hopefully putting distance between him and Dave. In his post-fight daze he didn’t realize the classroom he ducked into wasn’t his chemistry class. The sound of chalk scratching on a blackboard was enough to ground him so he didn’t launch into a full-fleged panic attack. He still recognized the fact his hands were shaking, so he slid onto one of the stools. Looking up at the teacher Ricky recognised him as the guy from the musical who saved the lightboard equipment. 

“Your name is Ricky right?” He asked, concerned. The chalkboard sound stopped as Ricky nodded.

“Yeah. Sorry for disturbing you, I thought this was chem. I’ll just let you get back to -” He glanced at the board and frowned, not recognizing the equations. “ - To whatever robotics thing you’re doing.” He pushed back against the table and stood back up. As he shoulder his bag he stumbled under the weight.

“Hold on Ricky, maybe I should take you to the nurse. Are those bruises on your face? Have you been in a fight?” Mr. Benjamin asked, concerned. Ricky shook his head,

“Uh no fights. Well I guess sort of if you count fighting with stairs a fight.” Mr. Benjamin seemed to buy his lie so Ricky pushed past the robotics teacher and tried to get through the rest of the day alone.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ricky and Big Red deal with homophobia in class. Luckily they've got a badass teacher who's an LGBTQ+ ally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Thanks so much for the kudos and comments on the first chapter. They really do mean a lot to me so I appreciate it.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> ~R

Thanks to the homophobic dick of a football captain, Ricky spent the rest of the day filled to the brim with anxiety boiling under his fingertips. He jumped at every locker slam, basketball bounce, and book drop, bracing to be hit by… _ something _ . His mind was filled with clouded thoughts of hopelessness and dead dreams and maybe the hints of a new song floated through his head. Ricky watched as the world passed him by hour by hour, class period by class period. He was too afraid to go back to his locker, just in case if any of Dave's lackeys were lurking nearby.

When the bell rang for lunch Ricky bypassed his and E.J.’s meeting spot, making a beeline straight for the cafeteria. He kept his head down as he navigated the crowd, millions of voices crowded around him as Ricky tried to keep his anxiety at bay. Glancing in the general direction of the theater kid’s usual table he saw his friends,

talking to each other.  _ E.J. _ , Ricky thought as he stepped out of line and began walking towards his friends.  _ E.J. will make this better, our friends can keep us safe. _ He sagged into his usual seat between Nini and Gina. Patting his pockets for his phone Ricky realized he must’ve left it behind in the hallway from his altercation with Dave. “You okay?” Nini asked him quietly. Apparently it wasn’t quiet enough since the rest of the table heard her and quieted down to a volume level previously thought to be impossible for a group of theater kids. Ricky exchanged a look with E.J., who frowned in concern. Nodding he answered,

“Yeah, I’m fine Nini.” His friends all gave him a pointed look, “I’m  _ fine _ .” Ricky insisted, staring directly at E.J.. Luckily his boyfriend seemed to believe him. E.J. softened his expression then stood up and walked around the table. To Ricky’s surprise the water polo captain walked around to him and wrapped his arms around Ricky’s chest. Ricky forced himself to hold back a wince as E.J. put pressure on a cracked rib from earlier.

“Actually… we’ve got something to tell you guys…” E.J. said, tripping over his words. Despite the situation Ricky couldn’t help but let a grin slip onto his face. Carlos’s eyes widened as Seb tossed an arm around the choreographer.

“Wait, are you two together?” Carlos asked like a hyperactive puppy, “like, together  _ together _ kissing and dating and you know… gay?” E.J. seemed stunned to silence so Ricky stepped in,

“Bisexual… at least I am. E.J. is still uh… figuring that out.” Seb nodded,

“I totally get it man.” Nini spoke up,

“Wait, so did I turn you bisexual? Because I was the last girl you dated and -” Ricky cut her off with a shoulder squeeze and chuckle,

“It doesn’t work like that Nina. I guess when we broke up I just sort of stopped dating for a while, then when I had a panic attack during the opening night for HSM this man was my knight in shining armor.” He said patting E.J. on the cheek. E.J. chuckled,

“More like we got lucky I found him and brought him back to life.” Gina cooed over the cuteness of their story. The conversation dulled slightly after that then Carlos clapped his hands together saying,

“Right so auditions for the spring musical guys! Who’s going to do it?” Everyone shifted down a seat so E.J. could slide into the table next to Ricky. Melting into E.J.’s chest Ricky watched as the conversation dulled into a boring lull. Finally taking his chance to be less anxious Ricky felt his eyelids grow heavier.

"Hey Sleeping Beauty, time to wake up," E.J. said, his voice filtering into Ricky's dreams. Blinking awake Ricky realized he and E.J. were the only two left at the table.

"Where'd everyone go?" Ricky asked, slightly dazed from just waking up. E.J. planted a soft kiss in Ricky's hair,

"Lunch is almost over. They wanted to make sure you got some sleep. You  _ did _ seem more off than usual this morning." Ricky shrugged then stretched his arms high over his head. He instantly regretted it as a burst of pain exploded in his chest. Ricky winced then leaned away from E.J.. He wrapped his arms around his stomach, face contorting into one of pain. To Ricky's surprise E.J. exclaimed,

"Ah ha! I knew you were hurt!" E.J. turned to face Ricky then asked, "who did it? Can I do anything to help?" Ricky shudder at the reminder of his fight from earlier that day. Shaking his head he pulled his sweatshirt across his stomach.

"Unless you don't mind getting into a fight with a set of stairs I'm fine," Ricky said, voice pitching at the word fine. E.J. tsked at him,

“You’re still hurt. Why didn’t you go to the nurse’s office?” Ricky winced as he shrugged in response. The warning bell rang loud over the chatter of students getting ready for their next class. Ricky tried to stand up, but E.J. wrapped his arms around him, holding him in place. When Ricky breathed he smiled as the familiar scent of E.J.’s conditioner filled his nose. “Ricky, are you sure you’re okay?” E.J. asked, buried into Ricky’s shoulder.

“I promise, if anything happens you’ll be the first to know,” Ricky swore. The two theater students began walking to their next classes together, arms slung around each other. As they approached Ricky’s history room he turned to E.J.. “Look,” he said hesitantly, “why don’t we uh… hold off on telling the rest of the polo team okay?” E.J. exclaimed

“I knew it, something happened, didn't it? You aren’t exactly the world’s best liar.” Narrowing his eyes E.J. asked, “who hurt you?” Ricky shrugged E.J.’s hand off his shoulder,

“I just don’t want to come out to  _ them _ yet, okay?” He insisted, hoping E.J. would let the matter drop. Luckily the second bell rang through the halls, signaling the start of class.  _ Talk about being saved by the bell _ , Ricky thought letting out a sigh. E.J. nodded,

“Okay, but we should do it soon, alright?” Ricky’s hand started shaking again so he balled it into a fist and shoved it into his pocket before E.J. could notice. Rocking on his heels Ricky said,

“I’ve got to get inside, and you’re running late. I’ll see you after school during drama club, right?” E.J. nodded then gave Ricky a hug and a quick peck on the check.

“I’ll see you during drama club. Miss. Jenn is making the announcement for the Spring musical. It’s always a big showstopper,” E.J. paused with a pondering look on his face. With a shrug he continued, “I wonder which one she picked this year.” Ricky shrugged,

“As long as I get to do it with you I don’t care what it is.” An adorable smile crossed E.J.’s face as he gave Ricky one last kiss.

“I’ll meet up with you later, yeah?” E.J. said before turning around and walking to his math class. Ricky let a wave of happiness wash over him as he settled into his usual seat in the back of the classroom. Big Red was in this class too, but his assigned seat was on the other side of the room. Settling in for a long second half of the day, Ricky pulled out his notebook and tried to focus on the lesson topic.

“Mr. Bowen do you have something to share with the class?” The history teacher asked, hitting Ricky’s desk with a ruler, snapping him out of his train of thoughts. Shaking his head Ricky said,

“Uh sorry. I was just -” Mrs. Kyle cut him off,

“ - daydream about your girlfriend outside of class. When you’re here you should be focused on your work.” A few girls next to them snickered as the blonde one said,

“I think you mean his boyfriend Mrs. Kyle.” The class erupted in laughter and Ricky sunk low into his seat, face flushed more red than the school’s colors. Across from the classroom Big Red stood up,

  
“What’s the big deal if Ricky and E.J. are dating? No one makes it a big deal if Dave fucks a cheerleader.” Ricky winced and tried to melt into the floor in embarrassment. The blonde rolled her eyes,

“Obviously because  _ that’s _ normal. Last I checked the digestive system works one way. Its unnatural for boys to -” She cut herself off with a shudder. Big Red opened his mouth to retort something, but Mrs. Kyle was one step ahead of him.

“Miss. Finkle, I do not care if your parents are on the school board. If I hear of you insulting another student’s way of life again you’ll be joining me in detention.” Ricky looked up at Mrs. Kyle in surprise, she was one of the most uptight teachers in the school. She was the last person he’d suspect of being pro-LGBTQ+. Jane protested,

“But it’s  _ unnatural _ . I go to church, they always talk about how boys are turning boys gay.” The class fell into an uncomfortable silence. Big Red walked across the room to stand behind Ricky as Mrs. Kyle walked to the bookshelf in five short strides. Muttering to herself she pulled a hardcover book out from one of the lower shelves and walked back to Jane’s desk. Peering over her shoulder Ricky could see the book was about the history side of the LGBTQ+ community. Handing Jane the book she said,

“The LGBTQ+ community  _ is _ what makes parts of history, history. If you insist on interrupting my class we can discuss this in detention after school every day this week.” Behind Ricky Big Red reached forward and placed a supporting hand on his shoulder. Jane looked furious, but didn’t say anything else in fear of earning more days in detention. Addressing the class Mrs. Kyle said, “if anyone else has issues with boys dating boys or any combination thereof please remember, they’re still  _ human _ . People trying to live their lives just like you and me. If anyone takes it upon themselves to try to ‘right their way of life’ I will assign you a fifteen page essay on the history and suffering of the LGBTQ+ movement. Homophobia is not welcome at East High, is that understood?” She narrowed her eyes, daring anyone to contradict her. Big Red gave Ricky’s shoulder a squeeze before returning to his desk. “Good,” Mrs. Kyle said as she returned to their lesson. “Please turn to page one-eighty-six and begin reading. The review questions at the end of the chapter will be due on friday. You may work with a partner if you wish.” Ricky pulled out his textbook and turned to the assigned page. Big Red slid into the now-empty seat beside him.

“Who knew Jane of all people was homophobic?” Big Red said as Ricky tried to focus on the assignment. Big Red sighed, “sometimes I just don’t understand people with such small brains.” Ricky squeezed the tip of his pen too hard and ink leaked all over his hand.

“Damn it, can we just work on the reading Big Red?” Ricky asked, pulling tissues out of a nearby box. Big Red nodded,

“Yeah of course. I read out loud and you annotate?” Nodding, Ricky agreed. His anxious knee-bouncing slowed as Big Red’s calming voice washed over him. Luckily they managed to get through the rest of the class without another incident. Ricky knew he and E.J. would face repercussions from coming out, he just didn’t expect them to happen so soon. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yell at me on Tumblr: @Random-nerd-3


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The drama club finds out what the spring musical is. Theater kids clap back against homophobes.
> 
> After a long day of homophobes and bullies Ricky finally gets to go home to his dad, who's waiting with grilled cheese and advice.

After history class Ricky managed to get through the rest of the day without having to deal with homophobic assholes. It was either out of sheer luck, or word got around about what Mrs. Kyle said to Jane during class. Ricky hoped it was the latter, and the homophobic activity would just disappear at the end of the week. The final bell rang and the halls flooded with students. Spirits high Ricky waded through the crowds and pushed his way to his and E.J.’s usual after school meeting spot. “You’re late,” E.J. commented as Ricky skidded to a stop at the corner of the lockers. Ricky pulled down on E.J.’s letterman jacket and pressed a kiss on his boyfriend’s lips. With a smile Ricky said,

“Hi.” E.J. let out a soft chuckle,

“What was that for?” He asked, eyes slightly confused. Ricky just gave him another kiss in response and let the world fall away around them. All that mattered was E.J., and E.J. was safe. “Hey, what happened today?” E.J. wondered, now both confused and worried. Ricky chuckled,

“Nothing important other than you know, us coming out to the entire student body.” E.J. brushed his fingers through Ricky’s hair. Ricky relaxed under E.J.’s soft touch. Leaning their foreheads against each other they laughed. With a grin Ricky snuck another kiss from E.J.

“Hey, why haven’t you been answering your phone?” E.J. asked as they walked towards the auditorium. The stage and most of the audience has already been rebuilt, they were just waiting on a few technical things then it would be a functional performance space again. Ricky hesitated, the shaking returned to his right hand.

“Uh I lost it earlier today,” Ricky said, building a lie in his head. “Guess I threw it out by accident during lunch or something.”  _ Hopefully that sounds believable enough. People accidentally throw out all kinds of shit when they dump their lunch trays,  _ Ricky thought as they entered the auditorium. E.J. hummed a song as he played with Ricky’s hair while they waited for the rest of the theater club to trickle in from their last period classes.

“What if they treat us differently?” E.J. suddenly asked as the others started filing into the seats. Ricky shook his head,

“They won’t.” E.J. turned to face him with a frown,

“How do you know?” Ricky shrugged,

“I just do. If they’re really our friends would they laugh if we wanted to try something really new?” E.J. playfully punched Ricky’s shoulder,

“That’s not how the line goes you nerd.” Ricky smiled,

“I know.” Nini flopped into the seat on Ricky’s right.

“I  _ hate _ eighth hour biology. My group is the absolute  _ worst _ . Only two of us actually care about what’s happening in the labs so out of the  _ five _ of us, we’re always the ones who do all the work.” Gina giggled as she fell into a seat in front of them.

“Sounds like it would suck. Don’t even get me started on what happened in english,” Gina said as she turned around in her seat. Ricky shrugged,

“What happened in english?” He asked her. Gina’s grin stretched across her face,

“Oh this fight almost broke out during class. I guess word’s getting around about two guys dating and there were a few absolute d-bags who were making fun of you two.” Ricky’s eyes widened,

“You didn’t do anything right? Cause that would be stupid if you did.” Gina shook her head,

“I didn’t have to. Sarah, she came out as male to female earlier last year? She tried to get them to shut up, and when that didn’t work she  _ socked _ the dude in the jaw. Straight up upper cutted him, I guess when she was younger her dad made her take up boxing to make her more ‘manly’ or whatever. Turns out she uses it to fight off homophobic assholes.” Gina dug through her bag then pulled out Ricky’s phone, which now had a half-shattered screen. “Here Ricky, the dick dropped it when Sarah punched him.” Ricky took the phone with thanks. E.J. laughed, stretching an arm around Ricky’s shoulders he asked,

“I wish I was there for that. Who’d she punch?” Gina grinned wider as she scrolled through her photos. Pulling up a picture of Dave she flipped the phone around so they could see him holding a bloody jaw. Nini gasped,

“That looks like it  _ hurt _ .” Miss. Jenn walked on stage, heels clacking like she meant business. Their conversation died down and Gina tucked her phone back into her bag. Ricky glanced at Gina, hoping Dave didn’t say anything about their altercation on the stairwell.

“Hello theater people!” Miss. Jenn yelled out, clapping her hands together. Carlos stood next to her, anxiously rolling on his heels with a wide smile stretched across his face. “Who’s ready to hear what the spring musical is going to be?!” Ricky cheered along with everyone else, excited about the next season’s show.

“I hope it’s Grease,  _ ooh _ , maybe it’s Les Mis.” Nini hissed in Ricky’s ear as Miss. Jenn opened the comically large folder in her hands. Gina shook her head,

“It’s not going to be Grease. They did that a few years ago.” Everyone watched as Miss. Jenn pulled out a folded up show poster and discarded the envelope onto the floor. She and Carlos exchanged conspiritoral looks as she unfolded the envelope.

“Attention everyone, the musical for the spring season is going to be…” Miss. Jenn grinned as she turned the poster around, “ _ Into the Woods!” _ Ricky had no idea what the show was about, but cheers from his fellow club members erupted around him so he assumed it was a good musical. E.J. leaned down and kissed Ricky on the cheek,

“We’re going to be princes Ricky,  _ princes _ !” E.J. exclaimed, all worries of the previous day gone from his head. Ricky laughed happily and cheered along with his friends. Gina and Nini were already talking about audition songs and monologues. Carlos cleared his throat,

“Everybody, everybody! I know this is exciting, but we’ve still got a few announcements to make so if you would all settle down that would be fabulous!” The noise of gossip quieted down to a bearable volume and Miss. Jenn cleared her throat,

“Right well, if you want to audition for the musical they will be in two weeks' time. All leadership and crew head interviews will take place next Friday! Plan accordingly if you want to audition  _ and _ take a leadership role in the production. As always Wildcats, all ideas for the production are welcome. See me during office hours or after school if you have anything cooking up in those brilliant minds of yours.” When she finished the rest of the club began clamoring over possible cast lists and audition slots again. Ricky’s anxiety was suddenly returning, his leg bouncing up and down.  _ I got Troy as a last-minute fluke. Even though I did HSM I have literally jack-shit theater experience. I’m not even talented _ . E.J. must have noticed his anxiousness because he placed a calm hand on Ricky’s bouncing knee.

“Hey,” E.J. whispered into Ricky’s ear over the noise, “why don’t we go back to your place yeah?” Ricky nodded,

“Yeah uh… yeah sounds good,” he stammered as he stood up, leaning on E.J. for support. Nini passed E.J. Ricky’s bag with a thankful smile. Ricky couldn’t see what E.J.’s response was, but his boyfriend helped him out of the auditorium. The two of them walked through the parking lot arm in arm. Luckily it was an hour after school let out so most of the cars were already gone, and since E.J. parked in the back of the lot they didn’t have to worry about anyone seeing them kiss before Ricky climbed into the passenger seat. Instead of turning on the car like Ricky thought he would though, E.J. just turned to face him.

“I know something happened,” E.J. said, leveling with Ricky. The younger of the two looked down at his hands. “Hey, none of that,” E.J. insisted. With his outstretched arm he turned Ricky’s chin so he had to look at him.

“I was scared E.J.,” Ricky said, voice barely above a whisper. “So fucking scared… he came after me and called us both fags and -” E.J. cut him off with a kiss,

“It’s going to be okay,” E.J. promised. “We’ve got the rest of our club behind us, and now apparently Sarah. Are you still hurt?” He asked after a moment of hesitation. Ricky nodded sheepishly before shrugging his sweatshirt off to reveal his upper right arm covered in bruised skin. E.J.’s eyes widened as he reached forward, and Ricky hissed in pain when E.J. lightly touched the bruised areas. Ricky dissolved in a puddle of tears as he warbled apologies about not being strong enough. He was sorry he wasn’t talented enough. He was sorry that he couldn’t fight Dave off, and that he still had stage fright despite being casted as a lead role. 

“Sorry, ‘m sorry E.J.,” Ricky whispered through the tears. E.J. gave him a watery smile,

“Sorry for what honey? You’re absolutely perfect,” E.J. placed a kiss at the top of Ricky’s head. Once Ricky was back to manageable levels of anxiety E.J. turned the car on and began to drive the familiar roads to Ricky’s house.

“I thought we were going to yours?” Ricky asked, slightly confused. E.J. gave him a pointed stare then said,

“You were attacked at school and you expect me to  _ not  _ tell your dad? He’d kill me if we tried to hide this from him. Even worse,” E.J. shuddered, “if he had to find out from a third party.” In the end Ricky knew he was right. Letting out a sigh he settled into the passenger seat. They arrived at his house half an hour latter and by that point Ricky’s arm had gone from mild pain to extremely sore.

  
“Ricky, E.J., I wasn’t expecting you back until later.” His dad said from his spot on the couch. At the sight of the book in his dad’s hands Ricky rose an eyebrow.

“Taking up reading Mr. Bowens?” E.J. asked as he helped Ricky into a kitchen chair. Ricky’s dad nodded in response. Standing up he said,

“You know it kid. How does grilled cheese sound? I can throw some sandwiches on the stove.” E.J. smiled,

“That would be great Mr. Bowens, thanks.” Ricky pulled out his history homework and began reading the half-chapter assigned for the day. Beside him E.J. started working on his own homework as well. After fifteen minutes of awkward silence and pencil scratching E.J. shut his textbook. Ricky shook his head, but of course E.J. bypassed Ricky’s request to keep secrets. Clearing his throat E.J. said,

“Uh, Mr. Bowen something happened at school today. We came out and some of the football players didn’t exactly take it well…” He trailed off. Ricky kicked his shin,

“You didn’t need to tell him like  _ that _ .” Ricky hissed as his dad slid into a chair across from them with a plate of grilled cheese. His dad looked at him, concerned. Leaning forward he asked,

“Ricky what happened?” Knowing he was cornered Ricky answered with a passive aggressive sigh,

“Just some asshole who thinks bisexual people shouldn’t exsist. I’m  _ fine _ ,” Ricky insisted. E.J. rolled his eyes and pulled Ricky’s sweatshirt down to reveal his black and blue arm.

“Arguably  _ not _ fine Mr. Bowen,” E.J interjected. Ricky glared at his boyfriend accusingly. His dad frowned,

“Did you tell a teacher? Miss. Jenn or that robotics guy from the musical?” Ricky’s memory flashed to when he walked into the wrong classroom. Lying he shook his head,

“No, I didn’t tell anyone. No one except E.J. at least.” His dad nodded,

“I’ll call your principal first thing tomorrow morning. This sort of harassment shouldn’t be allowed.  _ No _ harassment should be allowed at East High.” Ricky looked down, suddenly interested in his hands. E.J. reached out and grabbed Ricky’s hands,

“We’ll fight them whenever they rear their ugly heads.” Ricky nodded shakily,

“Yeah, I know. It’s been a long day, I’m going to head upstairs alright dad? Thanks for dinner.” His dad nodded, luckily holding back any other questions he had. Once Ricky was safe in his room, E.J. planted a soft kiss on his forehead.

“I’ll see you tomorrow yeah?” E.J. asked as Ricky’s eyes blinked heavily. “We can pick out audition songs during lunch.” Ricky nodded with a smile on his face. When Ricky was alone he finally allowed himself to relax. To his surprise, he fell asleep before the clock struck midnight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yell at me on Tumblr: @Random-nerd-3
> 
> feel free to leave comments! I love interacting with you all :)


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